Allocation of Work and Transfer between Teams

All children deserve the best experiences in life. From excellent parenting which promotes good health and educational attainment, to a wide range of opportunities to develop their talents and skills in order to have an enjoyable childhood and successful adult life. Stable placements, good health and support during transition are all essential elements, but children will only achieve their potential through the ambition and high expectation of those involved in their lives (The Children Act 1989: Guidance and Regulations. Volume 2: Care Planning, Placement and Case Review).

The relationship between social worker, child and their family is central to good care planning and positive outcomes for the child. Whenever children are consulted, both locally and nationally, they overwhelmingly point out the importance to them of having a good relationship with a social worker they know and trust.

This chapter sets out the principles which should be used to guide decision making when transferring responsibility for children from one social worker or social work team to another.

See also Appendix 1: Checklist for Managers and Workers When Handover is Necessary or Unavoidable.

• The primary consideration in all case transfer decisions and negotiations must be the needs and best interests of the child/young person and their family. Changes of worker must only occur for good reason or when unavoidable and must be recorded an evidenced as part of the child's care plan;
• The number of transfers will be kept to a minimum and wherever possible the child's wishes and feelings will be taken into account;
• It is essential to minimise the number of times children and family are required to tell their story and the new worker must pay due attention to previous assessments and life events for the child and parents before engaging in work with them; the child and their families wishes should be taken into account;
• Transfer of social worker should not be undertaken at the same time as other key events or transitions in a child's life. It should also be undertaken prior to key transitions to support planning and preparation;
• Transfer should not cause delay to social work intervention with families and should not cause delay in the progression of the child's care plan;
• Moving to dedicated teams builds on standards of good practice in the delivery of effective and efficient services for children, young people and their families. Assessments of all children, young people and their families should be undertaken in a timely way and be evidence based. All children and young people receiving a service should have a clear plan subject to their status i.e. Child in Need, child subject to a child protection plan or a cared for child;
• Until a child is formally transferred via ICS then the team still noted as responsible must ensure that all statutory requirements are met. Meeting children's needs and keeping them safe must not get lost when transferring between teams. The protocol must be used flexibly and with discretion between teams in order to provide high quality services for children and their families. This will involve professional judgement, assessment, cooperation and effective communication between managers and the teams they manage.

All contacts where there are concerns regarding a child's welfare or a consultation by any other agency about what to do when you are worried about a child, will go through the Safeguarding Hub.

The Safeguarding Hub will log all contacts for Child Protection or a Child in Need with parental consent onto ICS.

The Safeguarding Hub operates as a single access point for all contacts to Children's Services Social Care Teams. Contacts coming into the Safeguarding Hub will reflect varying levels of need and risk and will require an appropriate and proportionate response.

All concerns are RAG rated within 24 hours and actioned accordingly.

All potential concerns about the immediate safety of a child will be assessed on the day generally within 3 hours and will be sent to the relevant district Support and Protection Team to undertake an urgent assessment and initiate a Strategy Discussion where necessary.

Child in Need concerns are dealt with by the Safeguarding Hub within 48 Hours and sent to the relevant team.

Others that are less urgent e.g. private fostering are dealt with within 3 days.

A contact to the Safeguarding Hub may result in the following:

• No further action needed;
• Information and advice given;
• Early Help - Where a professional raises concerns about a child which appears suitable for early help (i.e. there is no Child Protection concern but there are additional needs that may well require a multi-agency response) the referrer will be asked to complete an assessment for early help;
• Child and Family Assessment – if an assessment is deemed necessary this will be sent to the relevant Children and Families Team to complete. The Safeguarding Hub does not undertake assessments.

Requests from Courts for Section 7 and 37 Reports

Where such reports are requested from local authority by the courts:

• If the case is already open the allocated worker should complete the report;
• If the case is not open the Safeguarding Hub should accept it as a referral and pass any direction for S37 Reports to the relevant Support and Protection Team for completion. The Team should notify legal services;
• If the case is not open and there has been active casework within the previous month of a request for a Section 7 Report then this should transfer to the team who last had the involvement, otherwise such reports are compiled by CAFCASS in accordance with national protocol.

Adoption and Permanence Related Contacts

• Applications for CAOS and Special Guardianship Orders
  If the child is currently Looked After by the Authority the case will be dealt with by the team who has case responsibility.
  If the case is not already open, the Safeguarding Hub would be the first point of contact the family should be advised to seek legal advice. Where a child is identified as being in need (S17) then Children Services Teams may have an involvement in private law proceedings, Legal and Placement panel;
  
  
• Non-agency Adoptions
  The initial referral should be taken by the Safeguarding Hub who will then pass this to the Support and Protection Team who will deal with the request and undertake the assessment if deemed appropriate. If this is an application by a Foster Carer, it would normally be an agency adoption of a known child, and there would be a joint visit between the CLA team SW and the Adoption and Fostering Assessment Team to assess the viability of this; 
  
  
• Overseas Adoptions
  There is a service level agreement with a voluntary agency in the North West and advice should be sought from the adoption advisor;
  
  
• Step Parent Adoptions
  Step parent adoption requests are transferred to the Support And Protection Team from the Safeguarding Hub;
  
  
• Requests by parent(s) with PR or Guardian(s) to the LAAA to place baby for adoption
  Where a parent makes a request for a child to be adopted the case should transfer to the CLA and Leaving Care Team from the Safeguarding Hub;
  
  
• Adoption Support
  If the Safeguarding Hub decides a contact may need the services of the Adoption Support team, then they will consult with the Team Manager Adoption Support to determine whether a specialist adoption assessment is required or whether to proceed by way of a single assessment. The Adoption Support Team will be responsible for undertaking the adoption support assessment if it is agreed an Adoption Support Service is required;
  
  
• Private Fostering
  Arrangements for private fostering are the responsibility of district Children's Services who will respond to private fostering situations either on receipt of formal notification or becoming aware of a private fostering arrangement in accordance with the current See Private Fostering.

The child and carer must be visited within 7 days to ensure the child's immediate welfare and safety set in process the arrangements for checks regarding the suitability of the arrangement. If the case is open, responsibility for completing the private fostering assessment rests with the district team that has the case.

If the case is not open, the responsibility for the first visit and assessment rests with the relevant Support and Protection Team. If appropriate, on-going visiting and support responsibilities would remain in the Support and Protection Team.

Access to the Children with Disabilities Team is via the multi-agency Safeguarding Hub team criteria. The CWD team will undertake all child and family assessments for children who fall within the eligibility criteria for their service other than those at risk of significant harm. If the outcome of the assessment identifies that the needs of the child meet the CWD eligibility criteria a worker will be allocated to complete a child in need plan and this will be reviewed in line with CWD procedures.

Where there appear to be Child Protection issues and Child Protection procedures are initiated, for example a strategy discussion, the Team Manager of the CWD team must inform the Support And Protection Team Manager who will arrange and chair the strategy meeting. The Child Protection processes will be the responsibility of the Support And Protection Team and if the child progresses to be subject to a Child Protection plan the CWD Team Manager will then ensure the allocated worker is changed to an 'involved 'worker who will work alongside the Social Worker from Support And Protection Team who will then be the allocated worker and have case responsibility.

Child with a disability who are accommodated under Section 20 or subject to care proceedings will be subject to joint working between the CWD and Support And Protection Teams and will transfer to the CWD at the end of proceedings or at the 4 month review if they are accommodated and their plan is for performance in public care.

Children with disabilities teams are case holders for children with disabilities who are accommodated under section 20, Section 20 short breaks and children who are looked after.

If the case needs to remain open to any district team due to Child Protection or other concerns the allocated worker will be from those teams, and the Adoption Support Service will, if appropriate, be provided by an “involved” worker from the Adoption Support Team.

If the Child Protection concerns become apparent on an open case to the Adoption Support Team then the Adoption Support Team Manager will consult with the Team Manager for the Support And Protection Team. If required the Support And Protection Team will allocate a worker with case responsibility who will take the lead on these issues and the Adoption Support Team Worker will remain 'involved' to provide support/guidance on the Adoption Support issues and continuity for the child/family.

When any team have completed work on the case and propose to cease their involvement where the Adoption Support Team are involved there must be consultation with the Team Manager for Adoption Support about this issue and the proposal that the worker from the Adoption Support team becomes the allocated worker.

When A looked after child is to be adopted and the case closes to the responsible team, but there is a need for post adoption support from the Adoption Support team, a representative of the Adoption Support Team must contribute to the adoption support plan and also attend the final CLA Review.

These enquiries are joint-worked with the Child Support And Protection Social Worker taking lead responsibility for the enquiries when concerns have originated from open cases in CWD teams and Adoption Support teams. If, following a Child Protection Conference, a Child Protection Plan is required, the Key Worker will be the CP Social Worker.

Within CLA and Leaving Care Teams Strategy Discussions and S.47 enquiries will be undertaken by these teams and not by the Support And Protection Teams.

Access to Records / Subject Access Requests

This is outlined in the Access to Records / Subject Access Requests Procedure.

Disagreement resolution

In all circumstances the relevant Team Manager should resolve any dispute between themselves or their team members.

Team Managers are responsible for ensuring their staff complete records prior to transfer, but this should not hold up transfer between teams as case drift is not acceptable.

In the event of serious disputes that cannot be resolved, despite clear discussions about the child's need and relevant professional judgements, then the Team Manager should discuss options for resolution with their Service Manager.

Appendix 1: Checklist for Managers and Workers When Handover is Necessary